


Aquatic

by Lady_Ganesh



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: Backstory, Community: Saiyuki_time, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-03-30
Updated: 2008-03-30
Packaged: 2017-10-03 19:43:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Ganesh/pseuds/Lady_Ganesh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Goku takes a bath. Written for the "unexplored territory" challenge at Saiyuki_time and completed in about thirty minutes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Aquatic

"I dunno about this," Goku said, staring at the water. He touched the clear surface with his finger; it was warm, and so still. He'd never seen water so still. He was still getting used to water that wasn't falling from the sky, and now he was supposed to _sit_ in it?

"It's a _bath,_ dumbass," Sanzo said. "Get in, you're filthy."

Goku pulled his shirt over his head. "Do _you_ take baths?"

"Of course." Sanzo pushed his glasses up on his nose and turned to the next page of his newspaper. "Stop asking stupid questions, the water'll get cold."

"Are you gonna come in too?"

"No," Sanzo said. "I'm just here to make sure you don't drown yourself. After that you can take your own damn baths."

"Okay," Goku said. He still didn't like being alone; having Sanzo around with the paper was better than nothing. Still, it didn't make a lot of sense, all this water here for only one person. He pulled his pants and underwear off; they were pretty dirty, too. He wondered if he should get back into his dirty clothes afterward. "Sanzo?"

He was already getting used to Sanzo's 'why are you still bothering me?' look. _"What?"_

"Afterward. Um. My clothes are--"

"You can borrow some of the monks' robes until yours are washed, and there's a towel on the hook to get you dry. Now _get in."_

_That_ was clear enough. Goku put his foot in. The water was really warm. It was...kind of nice. He settled into the water. "So what do I do now?"

"You _wash,_ idiot. The soap's over there." Sanzo took his eyes off the newspaper long enough to indicate a cake of something on a tray. "Rub it on your body and in your hair, then wash it off. Don't eat it."

"I wasn't _going_ to! I'm not stupid, dammit!" The little cake _did_ smell pretty good though; there was something familiar about it, like the air around the mountains in late summer, but it was a good familiar.

He rubbed the cake on his skin. It left a bubble-slicked train on his arm, and the smell was stronger. The grime responded to it too, starting to rub off more easily. _Huh._

This washing stuff was pretty easy. It felt pretty good too. Especially when he got below his waist and started....

His memories were a mash of fog and misery, and all he could really remember well was his name, but his instincts kicked in enough for him to realize that _that_ wasn't advisable in front of Sanzo. He satisfied himself with cleaning up, which was job enough. Sanzo had been right; he really _had_ been dirty.

He'd done this before; the washing, at any rate, the warm water, the bath. Something long-forgotten was half-gnawing at him, his body filling in where his mind still reached for some kind of recognition. It was a strange sensation.

He guessed he'd better start getting used to it.

"Sanzo?"

"Hn?"

"Can I get something to eat after this? I'm hungry."

"At least get clean first, Monkey. Then we'll talk."

"Okay," Goku grinned, knowing that meant 'yes,' and kept washing.


End file.
